Drop a few pounds, get better grades?
It was suggested by celebrity diet guru Pierre Dukan that childhood obesity in France be resolved by offering extra exam grades to students who participate in an "ideal weight" program, who slim down, and who maintain a BMI within a certain range. To see the full story, Click Here.
First of all, let me say that I absolutely support any program that would provide students with opportunities to learn about healthy eating habits, nutrition, exercise, and physical health in general; I'm also very much in favour of schools offering healthier choices to students in cafeterias, vending machines, etc.
However, I wonder about the potential short- and long-term consequences of implementing a system of reward that is based solely on whether students meet a specified weight goal, particularly one that is determined by a tool that has widely been considered arbitrary and inadequate -- the BMI index.
It's been argued time and again that BMIs and "skinniness" are not accurate measures of health and wellness, and I am inclined to agree with those arguments. There are plenty of people who do not fit society's definition of "skinny" or "thin" but who are extremely fit; those who have substantial muscle mass, which causes them to be heavier, but who are not overweight; those who might be considered too skinny but who are otherwise healthy. Alternatively, there are those who are the societal archetype of perfection in terms of weight and build, but who suffer in silence from debilitating eating disorders.
I will admit that this is an issue that resonates personally with me, as my sister was always very slim growing up and she was often made fun of by others at school. Other children (and even some teachers) thought she looked anorexic and would make cruel comments about her weight and perceived eating habits. Even as an adult, she was outrightly accused of being anorexic by her family doctor, for no other reason than because she fell below the BMI's cutoff for her "ideal" height and weight. I remember her feeling angry and in tears; she had been judged solely on her physical body characteristics. But you can't always judge a book by its cover, and that's precisely what Mr. Dukan's 'solution' to the childhood obesity epidemic proposes to do.
Looking ahead to the long-term consequences of Mr. Dukan's proposed program, I fear the perpetuation of further body image and self-esteem issues if children are expected to meet weight loss goals that may or may not be realistic for their particular bodies or lifestyles. The fact that an external reward system would be utilized to 'motivate' children also troubles me, and I worry about the eventual backfire of such a system when the benefits (i.e., extra grades) are no longer available to students, particularly if the intrinsic reward value of staying healthy, eating well, and maintaining a healthy body weight may not have been instilled.
In my opinion, we should be focusing our energies on instilling the latter in our youth -- not bribing them with higher marks to stay thin.
I will admit that this is an issue that resonates personally with me, as my sister was always very slim growing up and she was often made fun of by others at school. Other children (and even some teachers) thought she looked anorexic and would make cruel comments about her weight and perceived eating habits. Even as an adult, she was outrightly accused of being anorexic by her family doctor, for no other reason than because she fell below the BMI's cutoff for her "ideal" height and weight. I remember her feeling angry and in tears; she had been judged solely on her physical body characteristics. But you can't always judge a book by its cover, and that's precisely what Mr. Dukan's 'solution' to the childhood obesity epidemic proposes to do.
Looking ahead to the long-term consequences of Mr. Dukan's proposed program, I fear the perpetuation of further body image and self-esteem issues if children are expected to meet weight loss goals that may or may not be realistic for their particular bodies or lifestyles. The fact that an external reward system would be utilized to 'motivate' children also troubles me, and I worry about the eventual backfire of such a system when the benefits (i.e., extra grades) are no longer available to students, particularly if the intrinsic reward value of staying healthy, eating well, and maintaining a healthy body weight may not have been instilled.
In my opinion, we should be focusing our energies on instilling the latter in our youth -- not bribing them with higher marks to stay thin.
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